Archive for the '500 points' Category

I was all gaga over this Kat von D Rock n Roll Eyeshadow Palette Sephora was offering as one of its 500 point gifts, and of course I had to get it even though I’d been hoarding my points for who knows how long.

So I’ll bet you’re all wondering, was it worth the splurge? Is it really worth 500 of your precious points that you’ve so painstakingly accumulated?

Wondering if the Kat von D Rock n Roll Palette actually rocked my world? Find out (and check out the close-ups and swatches) after the jump!I bet you look at this palette and think fabulous hip packaging, some great wearable shades that aren’t too crazy but not too boring either, plus a cute mini brush ~ what could be better, right? Well honestly, pretty much anything. I gave this palette chance after chance to at least make me fall in like with it, but it just wasn’t to be.

The swatches above are of Believer, Confessional, Groupie and Motorhead, and all four shades were seriously unpigmented. I had to swipe at the shadow 3-4 times to get the amount of color I did above! Thanks to the lack of pigmentation, I found that these shadows lent my overall eye looks a muddy, dull appearance and really weren’t very flattering at all.

Now I’m not judging the rest of Kat von D’s products based upon this palette as I’ve heard that her regular palettes really are quite special, but I’m a little saddened that my introduction into the world of Kat von D was so lackluster.

The Verdict: Save your points for something better! I do really LOVE the packaging but the contents are less than stellar and really not worth spending those 500 points on.

After a long dry spell during which the only Sephora 500 point gift available was the rather blah Sephora palette that I had no desire to redeem my hard-earned points for, Sephora finally has something interesting up! I’ll definitely be trading in 500 of the points in my Beauty Bank for this limited-edition, full-size palette created by Kat Von D exclusively for Sephora’s Beauty Insiders.

Will you be trading in your points for this fun palette, or do you plan to save them until something better comes along?

You can read more about my order HERE–check out all that I got for only $50 plus tax! Well free actually since I had a gift card =D.

I used the AmorePacific Starter Kit for the first time last night and my skin is so incredibly soft this morning. I’ll definitely be reviewing this kit for you after the appropriate testing period, but so far so good!

I also entered code: GONATURAL at checkout to receive 8 free natural-product samples (check out what’s inside below), and redeemed my 500 Beauty Insider points for the most fabulous Korres gift set–scroll down for more details!

The gloss (in shade nude) and the mascara are full-sized, and I’ll be wearing them both in a half hour or so for a fun day out. I may just test the 24-Hour Moisturizer as well–may as well go all Korres this morning!

I took photos of the tag for you in case you were interested in reading more about the products and why creator Lena Korres loves each one so much.

And the 8 free samples I got:

Click to Enlarge (as usual–you can enlarge all the photos!)

And part of my Avon Haul:

I picked up Avon’s latest Spectra Lash Mascara. The purple part on the bottom is actually a dial that you click to amp up the volume–we’ll have to see how it works. In the middle we have a Big Color Glossly Lip Pencil which I’m eagerly anticipating playing with, and at the bottom we have Jillian Dempsey’s newest Celestial Eyeshadow–pretty! Reviews of everything to come shortly of course.

I was so excited to see that Sephora recently started carrying AmorePacific, since the only other place that I’ve seen much of them is Neiman Marcus. This Introductory Kit is really a great deal–the Moisture Bound Vitalizing Cream costs $150 for 1.7 ounces, and so the one ounce size in this kit would cost $88.24 alone! On top of that I’ve been dying to try the Enzyme Peel (it gets amazing reviews) and the cleansing oil, so this kit was a natural buy.

And what made this an even more exciting Sephora order for me was the fact that Sephora finally decided to grace its devoted Beauty Insiders with a halfway decent 500 point gift–this great Korres set of its founder’s favorite products, called Lena’s Picks (I happen to LOVE their lip butter–see my review HERE). I haven’t received mine yet but check out Nicole’s photos below:

I’ve heard great things about Korres’ skincare, the mascara get fabulous reviews, and I know for a fact that I really like their glosses so I’m so ridiculously excited to receive this set in the mail. Anybody else planning to redeem their points for this bag of natural, wholesome goodness?

Thanks Kristen for the heads up! Sephora’s current redemption is probably the best one I’ve seen so far–a Tarte EcoEyes Beauty Insider Exclusive Set($109 Value for $39). I’m seriously considering redeeming my 500 points for this, although it’s tough to let go of them when you’ve had them for so long!

What it is formulated to do:The Essential Must-Haves Kit is a limited-edition, Sephora-exclusive collection of Boscia’s naturally brilliant complexion solutions, offered first to Sephora Beauty Insiders. Cleanse, nourish, protect, blot, and spot-treat your way to stunning skin with this all-in-one, expert regime.

I’ve been a Sephora Beauty Insider for ages (basically since the program began) but I only recently learned that you can actually accumulate those Beauty Bank points when the 100 point deluxe sample isn’t quite to your liking. Basically when your Beauty Bank hits 500 points (I won’t even mention how many point I currently have, it’s embarrassing–I blame F&F) you’re eligible to redeem those points for an Insider-only exclusive product either online or in stores.

So I’ve been waiting and waiting to see what the 500 point product is; it isn’t always available so if you have 500 points you may need to wait until Sephora puts up a new product before you can take advantange of the 500 point redemption offer. Sephora finally put one up last night and it’s their 360 Degree Palette. I’m a little disappointed as I was expecting something a bit more interesting, so I’ll continue hoarding my points in the meantime and wait to see what the next product is!